Is Ornitholidays right for me?

There are a large number of factors that have to be considered when booking an escorted holiday, especially one that involves birdwatching. The first must be whether you are dealing with a reputable company and will your money be safe. Ornitholidays is the longest established birding company in the world, having started in 1965. It has grown gradually over this period to offering around 70 tours a year. We have been members of the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) for over 25 years and have an ATOL licence, which shows we hold the necessary financial bond to safeguard all of your money.
Our tours range from short breaks in Europe to three week holidays in Australia and New Zealand. To enjoy these holidays to the full you need a love of birds and wildlife and the desire to travel. The vast majority of our holidays are run at a relaxed pace, but each tour has been given gradings to help you make sure you chose the right one.
Your leader is also a very important ingredient of your holiday. There are many companies offering escorted holidays, but few use full-time tour leaders. Ornitholidays has a group of professional guides who spend their whole year taking birding parties around the world – many of them have led over 150 tours and some over 200. Their job is to make sure you enjoy your holiday and see the wildlife. They are not taking their annual holiday, but are well paid, highly motivated and dedicated leaders who are there for you and you alone. When booking a holiday consider the advantages of being led by such a leader – there is no choice really! On many holidays we also employ local guides to accompany the group, providing valuable insight into their country, its history and traditions, as well as its birds and wildlife.
What about the cost of the holiday – why are some companies cheaper than others for a similar itinerary? When you compare holidays think about what each company is providing. We tend to use scheduled airlines with the least number of connections. Where possible we try and allow for clients to travel from regional airports, as well as London, to their destination. The accommodation we use is often the best available and the price we quote for a holiday includes virtually everything, even tips and airport taxes. We have been organising holidays for a long time, so we know the best ground agents to use and the best areas to visit.
How many other companies can boast they have been visiting many destinations for over 35 years?

 

What about group size?
We state our maximum group size on each tour and this ranges from just eight clients to a maximum of 14. Each tour is different in the number of participants we carry – however, please note that the numbers given are maxima and the average is obviously less than this. We reserve the right, where there is one space left on a tour, to take a couple as the last booking. The maximum group size on any land-based tour though will never exceed 15 clients. Our groups normally consist of a mixture of both couples and single travellers. We are proud that we do not surcharge for small groups, and that we will often send a small group of only three or four clients. Over the last 15 years we have run almost 90% of our advertised programme and had to disappoint very few people by cancelling tours.

 

What about the company's ethos?
We try to run a range of holidays to suit all needs. We operate our tours as holidays, not as 24 hours a day marathons. We must stress that we are not a company catering for dawn to dusk birding – if that is what you require you must look elsewhere. We are there to enjoy, not annoy, the birds. We try to operate holidays which do not damage the environment and which focus on local environmental issues. We donate money to organisations to encourage conservation throughout the world, and we sponsor projects to help protect particular species.

 

Are Ornitholidays' tours suitable for a beginner?
Am I the right age for your holidays? We always carry a range of ages and abilities on any tour. We hope that our holidays will be an enjoyable experience, where we nurture both the beginner and expert alike. The age range we cater for is from 18 to 80, but the average is probably around 60. You are always made to feel welcome whatever your age or birding experience. Most of our tours have some “first timers” but you may be rubbing shoulders with some of our “old hands” who have travelled with us over 40 times! The fact that we have a number of clients with this tally of Ornitholidays is a great endorsement of our product. At the end of the day you can always speak to us in the office to discuss any queries that you may have, and we have a large stock of reports and diaries from past tours to give you a real flavour of what to expect on an Ornitholiday. Why not ring us on 01794 519445 and ask to speak to Nigel, Sandy or Ruth?